The Kraken Book Prize for Middle-Grade Fiction

Submissions for the 2021 Kraken Book Prize for Middle-Grade Fiction will open January 15, 2021.

2020 Winner Receives:

$750 and book publication by Regal House Publishing

The Kraken Book Prize will be issued to a work of compelling fiction for the Middle-Grade market.

The editors at Fitzroy Books will announce their longlist on May 15 and the winner on May 30, 2020.

2020 Finalist/s Receive:

Publication by Regal House Publishing

Electronic Submissions

Submissions are invited only through Submittable or by post mail. We do not have the staff capacity to read or respond to manuscripts that are submitted by fax or email.

*Submission fee: $25

*Please note that, without the submission fee, we would not be able to accept contest submissions, or to offer a $500 prize to the winner. As Regal House Publishing is a small press with limited staff capacity, contest submission fees allow us to maintain sufficient editorial resources for careful review of each and every manuscript. We understand that submission fees can be difficult to accommodate, but rest assured that because of them, your submission will be carefully read, reviewed, and considered for this prize. Thank you for your understanding.

Physical Submissions

All physical manuscripts must be mailed (or postmarked) to the below Regal House Publishing address by April 6, 2020. Please be sure to include the entry form and the $25 entry fee with your submission. Send one copy of each manuscript. Make check or money orders payable to Regal House Publishing. Do not pay by cash or credit card.

Translations, previously published, and collaborative manuscripts are not eligible.

Employees and volunteers of Regal House Publishing, Pact Press, Fitzroy Books or The Regal House Initiative, their partners or spouses, their immediate families, or immediate family of the judge are not eligible.

Manuscript Format:

Minimum of 120 pages, maximum of 350 pages.

At least 11pt. font

The entries will have a blind reading, so please do NOT include name, address and telephone number anywhere in the body of the manuscript. DO include it in the Submittable cover letter form (or if by mail, include a separate cover letter with the above information.

Do not send artwork or photographs.

Paginate consecutively and include a table of contents

Attach publications acknowledgments, if any.

Please adhere strictly to contest dates. Neither late nor early manuscripts will be accepted.

Contestants may submit the manuscript elsewhere simultaneously, but must notify Regal House Publishing immediately if a manuscript is accepted by another publisher.

Once submitted, manuscripts cannot be altered. Winner will be given the opportunity to revise before publication.

Contestants may submit more than one manuscript, but a separate entry fee and entry form must accompany each manuscript.

Manuscripts mailed from foreign countries risk not being received before final selections have been made.

Suggested Guidelines for postal entries:

Send manuscript in a plain or padded envelope. Please no boxes.

For notification of competition results, include a business-size SASE.

Keep a copy of your manuscript, as manuscripts will not be returned.

We advise that you send your manuscript by first class or priority mail.

Answers to FAQs:

The winner will be announced May 30, 2020.

Winning manuscript will be published in 2021/2022 in paperback, hardcover, and ebook editions.

The paper from all manuscripts will be recycled after the winner is announced.

Regal House Publishing assumes no responsibility for loss of manuscripts.

Check out our Book Award Program at Regal House Publishing. We offer annual awards and an honorarium to recognize excellence in Middle-Grade and Young Adult fiction, literary fiction, and poetry. In addition to the Kraken Book Prize and the Acheven Book Prize, Regal House Publishing offers: